01/11/2013

Another Celebrity Will Contested: Lessons for All

One
could only imagine what George Jefferson — the wise-cracking character who was
“movin’ on up” on the 1970′s TV hit, The Jeffersons — would have said about
this predicament. The body of actor
Sherman Hemsley, who played George Jefferson, has been kept on ice for the last
3 1/2 months. His remains have been
refrigerated since he passed away from lung cancer on July 24, 2012, at the age
of 74.

Hemsley’s story is a troubling
one, perhaps even more so because his estate was valued at only around $50,000.
Sherman Hemsley, who played George Jefferson on the hit TV comedy “The
Jeffersons,” didn’t have any real family, but he did have a close friend and
business manager in Flora Enchiton whom he named in the will he drafted a mere
six weeks before his passing. When a long-lost half-brother showed up to
dispute the validity of Hemsley’s will and claim his right to direct the
burial, the ensuing fight became both ugly and very public. In the end,
Hemsley’s will prevailed, but not without a long fight.

Teaching points:

Even estates of relatively small value can bring out
the worst in your relatives.

Proper estate planning can help ensure your wishes are
carried out after your passing, even if some would choose to violate them.

Don’t procrastinate. The fact that Hemsley’s will was
written a mere six weeks before his death did complicate matters. Had the will
been signed long ago, before Hemsley was sick, it’s unlikely that the case
would have taken so long to resolve.